SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Santa Clara cross country will gear up for conference championship weekend as hosts of the SCU Bronco Invitational Saturday morning. The meet will begin at 8 a.m. with the men's collegiate invitational 8-kilometer race at Baylands Park in Sunnyvale, California. The women's collegiate invitational 6-kilometer race gets underway at 8:45 a.m. Men's and women's open races will be run at the same distances and start at 9:30 a.m. and 10:15 a.m., respectively.

Each invitational race features 10 regionally teams in the most recent USTFCCCA poll (Oct. 2), including Santa Clara's men at No. 12 in the west region. UCLA carries the highest national ranking on the men's side at No. 20 while San Francisco is the top-ranked women's team in the NCAA poll at No. 6.

"This is as competitive of a Bronco Invitational field as we've had," Bronco associate head coach Pete Cushman said. "It's strong up front, it's deep, and we have great representation both in and out of our region."

Jack Davidson is setting the pace for a Bronco cross country team off to one of its best starts in several years. The sophomore followed up his standout debut campaign by leading his team in every race, including top 10 finishes in all three September races. He is coming off a 10th-place finish at the Chile Pepper Festival 10-kilometer race (30:46.1) on Sept. 30, in which the Broncos took second place among Division I programs.

Berriatua has finished in second place among Bronco runners in all three races this season. Olivero and Westfall each scored for Santa Clara at last year's invitational race.

The team's strong performances helped the Broncos reach their highest USTFCCCA West Region ranking in program history during consecutive weeks on Sept. 25 (No. 13) and Oct. 2 (No. 12).

Coach Cushman: "The men have been racing well, and we are excited for the opportunity to run against this field. If we can continue to race the way we have been this fall — aggressively and confidently — I think we'll be able to mix it up with some teams we haven't beaten in a while. The guys are fit, and now we just need to execute that plan."

Three different Broncos have led the team in its three major meets this season. Sanchez set the pace at the season-opening USF Invitational (22nd place) on Sept. 2, Nabholz topped the team at the Sundodger Invitational (42nd place) on Sept. 16 and Eikelberner (3rd place) led the Broncos to a dual victory over Saint Mary's on Sept. 22.

Sanchez and Martinez both scored for the Broncos in last year's invitational race.

Coach Cushman: "The learning curve for the women's team has been a big one, and we've continued to make big strides of improvement in practice. They're really looking forward to racing a 6k that they are familiar with. This should be a good final test prior to conference. Our spread was close against Saint Mary's and that has been a strength of this team, though I could see us getting some separation up front. I'm eager to see who is willing to take the opportunity to break out. I think we have a number of women capable of doing that."

Parking is $6 per car and $20 per bus in the Baylands Park lot. Those attending are encouraged to park in the Baylands lot, not in a lot for any of the local businesses near the park. Parking in any lot other than the Baylands lot is at your own risk. There is no credential required for team staff members or media.